Understanding GPS co-ordinates

[djbroughton]

I am trying to use Mapsource in conjunction with Google Earth to visualize what is at a certain point. When I take use Mapsource, the GPS co-ordinate for my house, for example is located at:

N50 54.471 W114 04.959

When I locate my house using Google Earth, the co-ordinates are:

N50 54 28.73 W114 04 57.96

Although close, these two locations are several blocks from each other. Why the difference and why the two numbering systems?

Thanks, Dave Broughton
2002 K1200LTC
1993 1993 K75RT

[Bayliner2052]

Depends on map datum. Here a converter.


http://jeeep.com/details/coord/

[bob_menton]

I am trying to use Mapsource in conjunction with Google Earth to visualize what is at a certain point. When I take use Mapsource, the GPS co-ordinate for my house, for example is located at:

N50 54.471 W114 04.959

When I locate my house using Google Earth, the co-ordinates are:

N50 54 28.73 W114 04 57.96

Although close, these two locations are several blocks from each other. Why the difference and why the two numbering systems?

Thanks, Dave Broughton
2002 K1200LTC
1993 1993 K75RT
Don't know why the two coordinates are so far apart, Dave. As a rule of thumb, once the gub'ment removed the dithering of frequencies from GPS satellites several years ago, you should be able to locate a point to within an area the size of a tennis court.

As to the two coordinate formats: one is degrees and decimal minutes (MapSource), the other degrees, minutes and decimal seconds. Convert the latter to the former by taking the decimal seconds and dividing them by 60. Doing this, the Google Earth coordinates convert to N50 54.479, W114 04.966.

- Bob

[kellenbenz]

N50 54.471 W114 04.959 is degrees (50) minutes (54) and 1000ths of a minute(471)


N50 54 28.73 W114 04 57.96 is degrees (50) minutes (54) seconds (28) and 100ths of a second (73)

60 minutes in a degree...60 seconds in a minute.


HTH

Ron